Page:Notes upon Russia (volume 1, 1851).djvu/134

cvi continued his journey with post horses to Vishni Volotchok, where he kept the feast of Easter. Thence he travelled by the river Tverza to Tver. The travellers were anxious to make their passage in a larger vessel, but could not proceed for the floating ice, which caused them great trouble in reaching the shore. On landing, they had to travel for a short time on foot, but at length found some wretched horses at a peasant’s house. In the convent of St. Ilia he found a man named Michaila Schaffroff, who came to meet him with a present from the grand-prince to him and to his nephew, of two horses apiece. From this point the grand-prince undertook the entire providing of the company. Shortly before reaching Moscow, an interpreter named Gregory Istumen announced to him the arrival of a noble courtier, sent by the grand-prince to meet him, named Timofei Constantinovich Chaldeneff, and begged Herberstein to descend from his horse in order to listen standing to the greeting which was to be offered him in the name of the grand-prince. Herberstein first excused himself on the score of fatigue, and then only agreed to alight on the condition that the other should do the same at the same moment, and when, after long parleying, this was agreed to, Herberstein contrived to descend very slowly, so that he should not touch the ground before the other.

On the 18th of April he arrived at Moscow with a suite of fifteen noblemen and thirty grooms belonging to the household of the grand-prince. He was conducted to the house of Prince Peter Repo-